Setting Up Shop: the Continued Chapter

Continuing from Here Special Flashback

Damien wasn't sure who these Thundercats were, but the idea of meeting a group of women was more than enough to spike the male's interest in them. Of course if these other women were half as beautiful as Ryuko, he was sure to have an interesting time. Still there would be time for him to fantasize about that prospect later, for now he needed to get everything in order. His company had already broke ground at Moonspire and the construction of the tower was under way, now thanks to this deal he would be able to set up the revenue for his company with the opening of a shop within the walls of the village. He would have Zhu Li draw up the contract when he returned to his penthouse, of course he could not wait for his mansion in Moonspire to be built to have more room than the penthouse offered.

The male would shake his head, catching himself day dreaming yet again. "I am terribly sorry my Lady Von Rose, I feel like I have taken up too much of your time already. I can have my assistant draw up the contract and send it over for you to review, meanwhile I will speak to the contractors about the building of the shop. And I can have the 50 Gliders currently in my warehouse in Moonspire shipped to the village by the end of the day." Damien would stand from his chair as he spoke, pausing for a moment as if he was considering something briefly before speaking again. "There is one thing that I would like to add, before I leave. There are other services that I can provide, in addition to the things we have discussed thus far. Off the books kind of things, so that there would be no trace back to the village. Espionage, Assassinations, whatever it is that you may require. My operatives are very discreet, and highly effective. We can take care of the dirty work, so to speak if you need us too. As far as payment, we can mark it off as corporate expense." The words would leave the male's mouth with a eerie calm, despite the fact that he just told an official of the village that his company dealt in criminal activity. The male always believed honest was a good policy, and keeping it straight from the get go avoided the awkward questions later. Besides villages dealt with Assassinations and espionage on a daily basis, offering the village an outlet with no trace back to them was mere business.

{9}

Damian’s comment apologizing for taking up too much of her time was almost enough to make the priestess chortal. With the level of intellect he’d displayed so far it was pretty hard to swallow that he could ever waste her time. He was a man who had the ability to take the dreams she’d been envisioning and turn them into reality. His mere presence has accelerated the expected time scale she’d been working with considerably.

How long would it have taken her, Niko and Natsuru to make some of the buildings she’d been thinking up on her own? Having his company around was going to be a huge boost to the economy. Not to mention that she was nearly ready for her fright with a god to prove her worth and unlock her full potential but the shield but would have had to wait how many weeks or even months to find someone else to make it for her, Time she couldn’t afford to waste if she was truly going to become the next Raikage.

It was one of the unfortunate truths of the world that those without power can protect nothing. Ryuko was pretty strong as ninja went and could take care of herself at least but she would need much more power then what she had now if she truly wanted to be able to protect an entire country.

“Oh my, that is quite a quick delivery. I’ll have to put together squads to train with them right away.” Exclaimed Ryuko mirthfully. Even without Airships the gliders could be put to use in various ways. Ryuko herself could fly if she didn’t mind weakening the barrier between her soul and Rafaela’s. Until she figured out the trick to being able to deploy her wings without bringing herself closer to a spiritual death this was the next best thing she could use.

If she found the summoning contract she was looking for she’d be able to use the summon as a carrier, flying though the sky and launching gliders off it for surprise air raids. Since Air power was virtually non-existent at the moment it was sure to be an extremely effective tactic during warfare.

She took a moment to close her eyes and reflect upon the last service that Damian had to offer her. So his company had a shady side to it as well, she’d like to say she was surprised but honestly that was more or less what she’d been expecting to begin with. He was such a knight in shining armor that there had to be some downside to him, but as downsides went this was one she was comfortable living with.


“I understand, such services would be most welcome. For this venture to work I’ll have a certain image to maintain. They say the brighter a light shines the longer a shadow it casts. Better I say to be in control of that shadow then let it run amok.” said the priestess pragmatically. Part of her was an idealist but she wasn’t so foolishly naive as to not also have a realist side to her as well. She was a ninja and knew that dirty work came as part of the job description.

“Very well, if you have elsewhere to be then I shall not keep you much longer. But before you leave I have two requests.” Ryuko said as she raised two fingers. “First, I’d like you to prioritize my shield over my spear. I have an ability that will allow me to draw attacks meant for my allies onto myself but I can’t use it well until I shore up my own defense.” she said as she put one finger down.

“Second, I want your secret service to please locate a nature clan user from another village and if possible bring me back an organ from them I can implant into myself.” Ryuko requested. She’d received an invitation to learn a type sage mode and would be leaving the village for a short time to do so soon.

She was already loosely aware of how they functioned due to the extensive research she’d done on the subject while looking for ways to counter Honiko and jinchuuriki like Nozomi. As much as she had a crush on the latter she also knew Nozomi respected power more than anything else. Perversely gaining the ability to beat the snot out of the woman might be the key to also gaining her love.

Anyhow she knew that sage’s functioned off nature energy as did the nature clan. Theoretically if she could implant an organ from a nature clan user she would gain their ability to passively gather nature energy to themselves allowing near perpetual use of her sage mode should she successfully learn to use one.

The truth was there was a nature clan user right in the village hospital which is why Ryuko was able to know so much about them. A Kumo ninja by the name of Akame was deep in a coma, not for the first time either. It would be so easy to just take an organ from but Ryuko could never bring herself to do that without express permission. Akame was a friend and she wished from the bottom of her heart for her to have a speedy recovery.

It seemed that as willing as Ryuko was to have Damian run a black ops group off the books there were still some lines she wasn’t willing to cross. There was being pragmatic and then there was being a ghoul. She had to maintain some level of ethics, otherwise she’d never be able to sleep at night.

[9]

Hearing that she would rather have the shield over a spear was a little bit of a shock to the man, it was not everyday that someone willing too on the blunt of the attacks for others. There was something about this woman that he simply could not place, but she was definitely different then others he had dealt with in the past. Damien would nod in compliance to the woman's first request, "I will begin designing your shield at once, Mi Lady." Upon hearing her second request however was a bit of a shock, the woman was after one of them? Damien had read stories of the power of the clan, but seeing one in person was few and far between. The male had always believed them to be a myth, a legend of a power beyond any of normal men. To hold a bond with nature beyond any except a master sage, but it was just a fantasy wasn't it? Damien would not voice his disbelief in their existence, the male would simply nod in compliance once more, "I will see what my men can uncover and report back to you as soon as possible, if there is one out there they will find it." Damien could easily have Zhu Li dispatch a surveillance team, the question became where they should start looking. The world was large, and if they did exist there were not many of them. Damien's thoughts on the matter would be interrupted by a knock at the door which was just as quickly opened without waiting for a reply to enter, revealing Zhu Li standing in the doorway. The woman wore an all black suit with a skirt and jacket, the shirt a black turtleneck. Her long silver hair flowing behind her as she walked, a single necklace bearing the Darhk Industries emblem hung from her neck. The confusion on the male's face would be obvious to anyone looking at him, though Zhu Li would not wait for her boss to introduce her. Quickly approaching Ryuko before extending her hand, "it is a pleasure to meet you Lady Von Rose. I am Zhu Li, Mister Darhk's personal assistant. I have been listening in on the conversation through Mister Darhk's radio in his jacket. I have the contract drafted for your review, and the gliders will be arriving within the hour from Moonspire's Warehouse. The special ops team also gearing up as we speak, for your special request." As Zhu Li spoke her eyes never left Ryuko's eyes, Damien however would look down at his coat at her mention of listening in. 'god damnit, how does she keep doing that' Damien would think to himself as he saw the radio in his inner pocket. Zhu Li would place the paperwork on the table in front of Ryuko before taking a step back for the woman to review, everything that Ryuko and Damien had discussed would be within the contract exactly as they agreed. On the last page would hold the bill for the gliders, with the note that they were not included in the package that Damien had introduced as the contract and was a special job request. The Gliders would be marked at retail price of 3k a piece, with the notation of a 1k deduction from that price for Kumogakure as Damien had stated during the conversation, resulting in Kumo only having to pay 100k for the 50 Gliders.

Damien would smile, if he could only use one word to describe Zhu Li, it would be Effective. For all his talk and ideas, the man knew that he would be nothing without that woman at his side. She was the true master of Darhk Industries, the puppet master working behind the scenes ensuring everything runs smoothly. She was also a weapon specialist, her skill with Bukijutsu only out shined by her intelligence. "Well, it seems Zhu Li has everything covered, I will leave you ladies to it." Damien would state with a slight bow before making his way to the door, leaving Zhu Li to finalize the transaction while he returned home to begin drafting the designs of the shield.

{Exit - Attempt}

[10]

Zhu Li:

[interruption]

Damian seemed mildly surprised that she was prioritizing defence over offenses. She knew that a lot of people felt like the best defence WAS a good offense to begin with but that wasn’t always necessarily true. Some people were just better suited for some roles then others, in the priestess case her medical skills and equipment had always lent her to a more supporting role to begin with. All that was really going to be changing was the scale.

“Very good.” She said both as a mark of approval of his statement to see her requests and as a way of dismissing him at the same time. He was ready to send in his secretary to finish off the finer nitty gritty details and get to work. The Priestess was eager to see what he could do so she was willing to let him go for now and deal with the woman in his steed.

With the wealth of knowledge she had at her fingertips from years of experience assisting Nariko at the village paperwork the rest would be a snap. She’d just have to check the contract to make sure there weren’t any nasty clauses hidden away, make sure the gliders had a reasonable price point and then sign on the dotted line.

Everything should have been easy. Keywords Should. As soon the the words listening in left Zhu Li’s lips it would feel to them as if the temperature in the room had dropped a few degrees as Ryuko began emitting a mysterious aura. It wasn’t quite killing intent and it wasn’t quite chakra either but here was an experienced shinobi of the highest order currently giving off an air of intimidation.

“Be quite!” it was only two words, spoken softly and evenly yet they contained overwhelming force. They would have been enough to cow even a man who had been through the hell of a battlefield and back.

In her younger days as a gennin Ryuko would have been flying off the handle right now, cantankerously taking the woman to task for what she had done. In some ways the calm measured anger she was displaying now was much much scarier since it showed that she was still thinking rationally and not letting her emotions overcome her.

“And you, Sit.” She commanded Damian as he took the transceiver out from his coat pocket as if bewildered how it’d gotten there in the first place. It seemed this wasn’t an intentional play on his part but that didn’t mean he was free to go after the grievous offense that had just occurred. Her tone made it clear that she wasn’t booking any argument.

“Turn that off, This instant.” she demanded. You could almost see the sparks flying as she considered if she should set off an electromagnetic pulse using one of her many lightning jutsu she had at her disposal. It would be a shame to go and fry the rest of the electronics in the office though.

Once they complied with her order she would let out a long sigh then point an eloquent finger at Zhu Li accusingly. “That had better be the only transceiver here. Sweet Merciful Hakkin do you have any idea what you have done?” she asked.

If the Girl had been looking to simply impress her then she’d been going about it in all the wrong ways. Sure she was shocked to see they’d managed to miniaturize a transceiver to that extent but she was more livid about what they’d done with the device then impressed. This was supposed to be one of the most secure buildings in the entire village. She’d been talking with Damian about highly confidential top secret information that she did not want leaked and now they’d gone and broadcast everything she’d been saying.

The guards would have to be punished for their failure of not screening Damian thoroughly enough. She’d have them on Latrine duty for the next month at the very least giving them literally shit work so that could reflect on what they had done. Zhu Li however could not be let off so lightly, but before that would come answers.

“Were you recording? How many receivers exist that can pick up the signal? What’s the broadcasting range? Was the transmission encoded? What counter measures can we take to prevent a signal from getting out? ” Ryuko asked several questions in rapid fire succession. The fact that she understood all these concepts and the security risks involved showed that she wasn’t a woman of high intelligence for nothing.

The fact Zhu Li had overheard their every word was bad enough. The last thing she wanted to hear now was that it had been broadcast on an open channel for everyone to hear. While she didn’t think she’d said anything that could get her in too much hot water if it was to get out their was still information contained within that she’d rather not go public like the details about her new equipment, the new types of buildings and vehicles they were thinking of building or the fact she was willing to let a off the books dark organization exist in her neck of the woods.

Actually that last part could be pretty bad if it got out into the open. The egg on her face would be spectacular. She could kiss the sunny ways she was trying to cultivate goodbye. Even if it hadn’t leaked to the public if it’d been recorded it could be used as blackmail material. To be frank she wasn’t the type to just sit back and let others hold leverage over her so easily. She’d worked too long and too hard to be brought down now by a careless slip of the tongue.

“You’ve just committed what could be considered as an act of espionage. What’s worse you’ve made your boss an unwitting accomplice to your crime. By Law I could execute you both on the spot.” said the priestess with a dead serious expression on her face. It was far from an idol threat.

She might not look like she was armed but it was a sure bet she had at least one knife on her tucked away in case of an emergency. With the difference in level between them she could whip it and slash their throats before they could even blink. Thought then again it wasn’t like she actually needed a tool. She was more than capable of breaking a man with her bare hands if required. It was lucky for Damian that she needed him and lucky for Zhu Li that she wasn’t some blood thirsty monster out to kill at the drop of a hat. She was quite vexed by what the woman had done but in a way she had to admire her. It took guts to outright admit what she’d done when she could have kept quiet and gotten away with it.

Ryuko needed talent like that and couldn’t afford to waste it over one minor offence, especially if the damage had been mostly contained. It was in her best interests to be merciful here but that didn’t mean she was about to just let herself be walked all over either. The Woman had dealt her an unexpected card and she was going to take full advantage to get as many concessions as she could reasonably get away with.

“Exactly pray tell are you planning to make this up to me...to us?” she asked a question directed to not just Zhu Li but to both of her guests. She was in a sense subtle implying that they needed to pay up in order to earn her forgiveness.

[10]

Damien stood frozen in place by both shock and confusion, who did this woman think she was ordering him around like that. No one had ever talked to the male in such a manner, he wasn't one for taking orders. He had always had a problem with authority, it was why he was his own boss. No one can tell you what to do when you work for yourself, but there was something about this woman. He knew that most shinobi held power that could end him, and he had no doubt the woman was one of them. She commanded respect and for that he admired her, in fact it caused him to feel even more attracted to her than he already had. The male would snap out of his daze when the woman fired off questions about the transmitters, Damien was at a loss for words unable to find his voice. Luckily for him, Zhu Li would answer them just as fast as they were asked.

"No the conversation was not recorded it is not designed for that they only allow two way conversation, these are prototypes of Mister Darhk's design and they are the only two in existence. The broadcasting range is yet to be determined, but considering the distance between Mister Darhk's loft and your office it is at least 10 km. Considering there was no static I would say it could probably go much further, but this is why we are the ones testing the prototype. The device works in a more sophisticated design than your radios, as I said Mister Darhk designed them as well as encrypted them. There is not a person alive that is smarter than Mister Darhk in my opinion and therefore I have no fear that these devices or their signal can be intercepted. They are designed to work no matter the condition, miles underground, caves, storms, anything. To ensure that forces on the ground would always have a connection with command, and so command can know what is happening on the front line. Mister Darhk made it so that they only work for the first person who activates it through chakra infusion, meaning if the device were taken by someone else it would not work for them and be useless. Your men didn't notice it because of its design, the transceiver is no larger than a pack of cigarettes and it's earpiece is wireless making it virtually undetectable, of course Mister Darhk left his earpiece at the loft. Otherwise I could have informed him and avoided this confusion, I deeply apologize if my actions have offended you."

Zhu Li would stiffen at Ryuko's words of execution, not for herself but because the woman stated both of them. Zhu Li couldn't bare the thought that her actions could somehow lead to Damien's harm, Zhu Li would kneel down at the woman's feet. "I take full responsibility for my actions, please do not punish Mister Darhk for my wrong doing. He was unaware, and had no hand in my actions. I will bare the full punishment you deem fit, in order to make it up to you." As she spoke Zhu Li's head would be down staring at the ground, as if she were a mother asking a warlord not to kill her child. Damien could not believe the words that had came for Zhu Li, he would never allow harm to come to her either. Finally finding his voice, the male would speak up. "Um, yeah. No I have a problem with that, Zhu Li stand up." Damien would then turn to look at Ryuko, "I am willing to bet that my company is worth more to you than some problem you have with security, Zhu Li has already explained that these are the only two devices, and there is not a person alive that can hack my encryptions. So I have this for you, you can either kill us both and know that your dream will never become a reality or you can let us go knowing that we are the only ones who can help you achieve what you want."

Damien was making a bold move, on calling the woman on her bluff. That is if she was bluffing about killing them, but he held the confidence that there was only one person who could give Ryuko what she truly needed and that was him. Zhu Li for the first time in her employment to Damien however did not do what he had told her to do, she remained kneeled at Ryuko's feet awaiting her punishment. It was not like her to disobey the male, but even though Damien felt he held all the cards, Zhu Li however knew that the woman held the true power over their lives.

[11]

On a scale from 0-10 Ryuko was about a 7 right now for how pissed off she was.   Considering how rare it was for her to get truly angry that was saying a lot.    Despite her cantankerousness she wasn’t so mad that she was firing her intimidation at full blast.   She wanted to prove a point, not knock them out cold.  

Still she was impressed at how well the two held their composure.  She’d seen grown men wet themselves before from drawing her ire.   It wasn’t like it had no effect at all since Zhu Li was speaking like a motormouth but the fact that she was talking at all was a mark of her fortitude.

What the priestess was told was more than a little concerning.  The fact it wasn’t being recorded THIS time was reassuring but that didn’t mean they wouldn’t find a way to add that feature in the future.   The sheer range however was alarming, the idea it could travel over 10 kilometers was good for general broadcasts but seems awfully vulnerable to her.   Hakkin only knew which of their enemies could potentially be listening in encrypted or not.

Damian quickly saw how transparent her threat was but that was of little concern to her.   She couldn’t even call it a proper bluff when she’d had no intention of following thought to begin with.  If she really wanted them dead for the offence they would be so already.

“Relax, this isn’t Kirigakure.  We don’t kill people at the drop of a dime here.”  said Ryuko with a light chuckle as she withdrew the aura she’d been projecting. It was like a fresh breeze had blown through the room taking most of the tension with it.

“That said there must be some consequence.  I said before that I would pay for at least one of the two personal items I requested you make for me.   Tis only fair to ask now that you make them both free of charge now in exchange for my indulgence.”  said the priestess sternly knowing items of that calibur where quite literally worth their weight in gold.  Still in comparison to the other punishments she could leevy that weren’t capital in nature they were still getting off quite cheaply since she’d still be the one providing the materials.   She was being harsh but fair.

“As for your encryption I would advise you against being so arrogant.   Unless tis quite literally the Voynich manuscript most codes are cracked given enough time.  I’ve personally seen someone solve a quite complicated cipher in under 5 minutes flat.    While Sir Damian is indeed quite smart, tis not wise to assume there are no others like him in this vast wide world we live in. Tis foolish to discount their existence and even more foolish still to underestimate them.” warned the Priestess.

It was precisely because Ryuko was so smart that she knew she wasn’t the smartest herself.   Having the wisdom to look beyond herself for inspiration was perhaps the wisest thing she’d even done in her life.  She had no use for self inflated arrogance.  That’s why she always tried to plan for failure to the best of her ability.

[11]

A slight breeze seemed to roll through the room, as the woman's tone changed suddenly. Speaking of how they were not like Kiri, Damien smiled he had taken a calculated risk and it had paid off. It wasn't everyday that he was able to do such a thing, nor did he believe it was something that would be happening regularly. Zhu Li would finally pick herself up from the floor, returning to Damien's side as Ryuko would state her newest demand as well as her caution for not underestimating others.

"You expect me to work for free?" Damien would question with a tone of sarcasm in his voice at the woman's remark of making her requested items at no cost, even if the woman provided the material the male did not work for free. "You must have me mistaken for one of your shinobi that you can take advantage of miss Von Rose, the fact that I included free times in our contract was out of business. However that is as far as any charity will go with me, I have never provided my services for free nor do I plan to start. Especially for items of the caliber you are requesting, the fact that I was willing to do a two for one deal was out of generosity. However, you now insult me by demanding my services for free. You dare to try to punish me for the fault of your guards, your lucky I do not destroy that contract and take my company to a country that truly understands my work and its value." The anger in the male's voice would be apparent, it was as if the woman had just insulted his mother only it was worse because the woman insulted his skill. Damien would look to Zhu Li briefly before turning back to Ryuko, "So I have a new purposal for you instead. The contract will remain as is with the exception that you will pay Full price for both items as well as additional pay as compensation for your insult, or me and Zhu Li can take our purposal to another Kage. The choice is yours, but if I were you I would think long and hard. Sure there are other out there that could possibly do the job for you, but will their product be as good as the product you know I can provide you?" Damien knew he was once again taking a risk with this ultimatum he was giving Ryuko, if she denied him it would set Darhk Industries back months having to set up in another country. Of course if she agreed then there would always be animosity between them now and that was never good for a business relationship, either way it was going to be a lose lose situation for him. Still there was no turning back now, the words were spoken and he couldn't recant least he look weak. The ball was in Ryuko's court now, and her answer would determine how they move forward from here.

[12]

Damian asked if she expected him to work for free as if it was the most ridiculous thing in the world. For such a smart man he could be quite oblivious in some ways. Didn’t he realize that not all forms of transitions were monetary? There were some things that couldn’t be bought no matter how much money was paid and getting out of capital offenses was usually one of them.

“If that is enough to insult you then you have surprisingly thin skin for a man I thought to be of lordly caliber.” Ryuko said with a sigh as if it was a terrible shame that he was offended for her doing her due diligence in enforcing the law. “The fact remains that your associate has committed a Felony offence with you as an accessory however unwittingly. Ignorance of the law is no excuse for breaking it.” she said calmly allowing his anger to wash past her like an unmoving stone in a flowing river.

“I must warn you that your outburst just now brought you dangerously close to crossing the line to even further crimes. Someone less lenient then I would happily be stacking additional charges on you right about now.” she warned.

“To be frank I expected better of you. What sort of man doesn’t take responsibility for the actions of his own subordinates? And yet you can’t even muster up so much as a simple apology? Even Zhu Li had the good sense to manage that much.” said Ryuko with a mocking scoff.

“To be quite frank if you want to leave then you’re free to go. Tis not like you are the only engineer I have access to. I admit tis will take more time without you, however I’m still quite young so that is a luxury I can afford.” said the priestess, giving him a dismissive wave of her hand as if telling him to be out gone already.

“I should warn you however that as you know too much we WILL have to scrub your memories of today if you wish to take your business elsewhere. I”m told my man are quite skilled at manipulation so hopefully you’ll come out the other side mostly intact.” She said favoring him a bright smile. It wasn’t a threat because she genuinely wished he’d be ok but it was well known that precision with such procedures was difficult and some additional memory loss was to be expected as a side effect. Those that where really unlucky sometimes came out the other-side not quite themselves.

“There’s also the small matter of your fine you’ll have to pay. 2.5 million Ryo to be precise.” added the soon to be Raikage with a predatory grin. That was the exact same amount she had offered him to set up shop in this country. Death wasn’t the only thing punishment she could give out for committing a felony after all

It was an amount of money she knew he wouldn’t easily be able to pay. Enough to cripple his chances of starting up a company in some other region. Good luck trying to escape her debt when she had a legion of highly skilled ninja to send after him in order to collect. He was trying to play hardball with the wrong person as while she wouldn’t outright murder him she was outright ruthless otherwise.

“Of course that’s only if you still wish to leave. If you wish to stay I wouldn’t mind waving the fine this once and returning to the original contract. “ she said in an attempt to reel him back hook line and sinker. Perhaps she’d pushed a bit too hard trying to get her spear for free to go along with her shield so now she was attempting to offer him some mercy without appearing weak or easy in the process. She absolutely couldn't afford to let herself be pushed around.

“You know I was thinking of making you a noble of the cloth but your lack of manners has been most appalling. A shame really as with a bit more polishing you would have been a fine addition to the royal courts.” she continued dangling a carrot before him after the preverbal stick.

[12]

Damien would simply smirk at Ryuko's remark about an apology for Zhu Li's actions, "You expect me to apologize for my employee doing what I hired her to do, for what she is paid to do. I hired Zhu Li because she was effective and got the job done ahead of schedule, what she did today is just that. Rather than make you wait possible hours to be able to read the contract or wait days for the arrival of the gliders, she got it taken care of before our meeting was even over. So no I will not apologize for her actions, because she was doing as she was suppose to as it falls within her job description. If she broke the law it was because your guards did not do their job, if they did she would not have been able to listen in and we wouldn't be having the conversation we are having now. In my eyes Zhu Li was doing her job, I do not punish my subordinates for doing their job, and I will certainly not apologize for it. My company and its employees may be unconventional to you, however there is a reason my company is as successful as it is. As far as I am concerned all of this is your fault, maybe instead of focusing on her you should turn your aggression towards your own people for not doing their job. Perhaps you should hire some more attentive guards, or ensure they do a more thorough check of someone. Rather than blame the person or threaten them as you have me and my subordinate, because your guards did not do their job. Perhaps you should look more in-depth the people you have working for you, you say ignorance of the law is no excuse. Well I say absence of security leads to the breaking of laws, and whether known or unknown the fault falls upon your men not mine." Damien's eyes were void of all emotion at this point, he did not like being threaten nor did he like things being demanded of him and he was not one to apologize for the actions of someone else. As he stated in his eye Zhu Li was following orders, doing her job so as far as he was concerned he had no reason to apologize. If the woman did not like the way he ran his business, then she was free to have her men wipe his mind if that is what she wanted, but the male would not apologize. He did not care whether the woman wiped his mind, this had gone beyond the contract now. The woman has not only insulted his craft, now she insulted how he ran his business. Damien was not above taking responsibility for a subordinates action, however when the fault is not in their control then it falls to the one who had control. In this case Ryuko. Damien and Zhu Li were not Kumogakure natives, nor did they know what they were doing as wrong. In Ryuko's eyes ignorance of the law was no excuse, but in Damien's eyes blaming someone because her guards did not do their job was where the problem was.

When Ryuko offered the return to the terms of the original contract, Zhu Li would look to Damien with pleasing eyes. She knew her employer was a stubborn man, and that he was not usually to back down when he made his mind up. She also ran the books for the man, and knew that he didn't have the money to pay the fine the woman stated. A fact that she believed the woman knew, and was going to exploit Damien for it. Unfortunately, the truth was just as badly as Kumo needed Darhk Industries, Darhk Industries needed Kumo. Damien looked to Zhu Li, seeing the concern in her eyes caused the man to do something he had never done, he softened his demeanor before turning back to Ryuko. The woman had him by his proverbial balls and was twisting them hard, she had him back against the corner and she knew it. "You may not like my manners, but at least I do not threaten business partners or their subordinates for something that was clearly my subordinates fault. I certainly would not insult them as you have me, you can think what you want of me, my manners, or my thin skin as you put it, but my work is my art and I will not be insulted by saying it is not worth payment. You can keep your royal court for yourself, I am not royalty nor have I ever been. I am a worker, my father may have started this company but I am the one who brought it from the dirt. I have no reason or desire to be apart of some royal court, if I did I would be already. And while I may not like this, you have not left me with much of a choice. I will accept that the contract remains as the original discussion was agreed upon." The male would make no attempt to even seem like he apologized for anything, he stated his reasons and that was that. If the woman had a problem with it, there would be nothing he could do about it anyway.

[13]

Reaching up a hand Ryuko pinched the bridge of her nose, closing her eyes and breathing a deep sigh as she wondered to herself how to deal with the man child before her. If someone didn’t set him straight now he was going to end up getting himself and her by extension into a lot of trouble speaking to some forgin dignitary down the line.

“Somehow I doubt you hired her with the express intention to break the law. There is a fine line between expediency and being injudicious. It’s often better to do things the proper way then rushing. Trying to go too fast often results in creating incidents such as this one.” said Ryuko dryly trying to explain to him why his excuses weren’t going to fly here.

“While My guards will be reprimanded for their mistake tis hard to fully hold them responsible for you sneaking in an entirely new type of spying device the likes of which they have never seen before and could hardly comprehend. That transceiver is smaller than any my forces have previously encountered before today.” In a way that was worthy of a commendation.

Even Ryuko hadn’t expected that someone would manage to miniaturize it to that extent but she could hardly praise him now in the middle of a lecture. Talk about giving mixed messages. If she wasn’t clear and specific about how she handled this then Damian would walk away with an even bigger swelled head then he had already. Today’s problem would only grow exponentially harder to deal with tomorrow if she let things slide.

“If you tried that argument as a defence in a court of law I doubt that there isn’t a judge in the world who wouldn’t laugh at the attempt. Tis would be like robbing a bank and saying it was security that broke the law for being unable to prevent it.” She said with a jovial tone as if she was amused by his sad attempt at passing the buck.

When he agreed to return to the original contract she gave him friendly smile and then stood up once more walking over to him with her hand out as if she was about to take his and shake it only to instead use it to deliver a slap to his right cheek at the last second. It wasn’t even a hard slap either, she held back considerably knowing from his frame that he was more fragile than most. The only thing she’d be wounding today was his pride.

“Enough of your petulant excuses BOY. I’ll treat you like a proper business partner and equal when you deserve to be treated as such. Whining like a child when your hand was caught in the preverbal cookie jar has done you no favors. I hate people who run away from responsibilities, especially when they can help. If you can’t take pride in the way you’ve protected your employ by apologizing for their actions then as far as I’m concerned you’re not a real man.” she declared forcefully.

The second he’d agreed to become her chief medical officer he’d become one of her men as far as she was concerned and she was going to discipline him the same as she would any other unruly gennin. As smart as he was if he didn’t know his place he was of little to no use to her in the long run. Turning her back on him she gave him a dismissive wave.

“I have no more time for you today. You need to do some growing up fast if you want to survive as a businessman.” she warned. If he’d pulled this stunt with just about anyone else his company would be no more than an empire of dirt already. He’d better be thankful for Hakkin’s mercy that she still saw something in him that was worth going to all the trouble of sorting him out.

It wasn’t often she’d met someone who’d turn down the chance at becoming a nobel. That was a golden ticket to a life of luxury and wealth that some people would literally kill to get their hands on. As much as she was disappointed in his lack of decorum she was intrigued by how different he was from most other businessmen she had met over the years who had bent over backwards to kiss her feet and earn her favor. The fact he was actually willing to stand up to her was actually kind of refreshing. If only he knew how to pick his timing and his battles better.

[13]

It became apparent to Damien when the woman compared what Zhu Li had done to robbing a bank, that the two of them were never going to see eye to eye on this matter. Damien decided it would be best to simply not push the issue any further, as it would only lead to more hostilities between them if left to continue. He needed to salvage this transaction the best he could, he just hoped it wasn't too late.

Damien would outstretch his hand as Ryuko approached fully expecting to shake the woman's hand and conclude the business, when at the last second the woman pulled her hand away and went to slap him. However, rather than Damien's cheek, Ryuko's slap would be met by Zhu Li's cheek. To the unobservant one might think she had used the replacement technique switching places with him, however what she actually did was grab Damien by the collar pulling him away from the slap and throwing him into the chair that was behind him as she slid into the spot he had stood. It would all happen so fast that Damien found himself sitting in the chair wondering what just happened as he stared at Zhu Li's back though he would make no attempt to get out of the chair.

Zhu Li would stand firmly between Ryuko and the no sitting Damien, the slap to her cheek was not hard enough to hurt her however it left a nice red mark where Ryuko's slap had connected. She would not flinch or wince from it, in fact she would act almost as though she did not even notice it at a. "I have already stated that I would take the blunt of whatever punishment you deemed necessary, that includes you wishing to slap Mister Darhk."l Zhu Li would state, recalling her statement moments before. "I was hired to not only be his secretary but to ensure that Mister Darhk is not to harmed in any manner, to allow you to slap him would mean I have failed my job." Zhu Li stated in a tone that once again would remind Damien of a mother protecting her child. "Since he is too stubborn to do it himself. On behalf of Mister Darhk, I would like to apologize once more. We have wronged you, and we can assure you it will not happen again." At these words Damien would look like he was going to say something, however Zhu Li would glare at the male and no words would leave his mouth. Zhu Li would then turn back to Ryuko, "Mister Darhk would also like to offer you a further discount on the gliders in order to try and alleviate this situation, would 75k be an acceptable price?"

Damien starred in disbelief at Zhu Li's words, almost as if he never said such a thing, which he didn't. Damien did not know what Zhu Li was playing at, but he did not like the fact that she was costing him money. With the drop in price that low, it would barely cover the cost to make the gliders. How was he suppose to make a profit if she lowered the price like that, despite how anger the male would be at Zhu Li's words he would not say anything for fear of Zhu Li striking him. If Zhu Li got him out of this he would have considered giving her a raise, had she not just given that away. Still he knew he would have to find some way to thank her when this was all said and done, for everything she had done for him.

Ryuko raised an eyebrow as Zhu Li managed to get Damian out of the way of being slapped at the last second with little advance warning about the fact that she was going to attempt to strike him. The priestess had hardly been serious about her efforts but even so her hands moved at speeds that not just anybody could deal with.

“Well if nothing else I see you have capable subordinates.” she commented dryly. Damian might be rude but he was clearly highly capable if he could garner loyalty like that. Zhu Li was willing to take a preverbal Kunai for him which was something that you couldn’t just buy with money.

Silently she shot Zhu Li a look that said are you sure that was the right call to make? Shielding him for getting a well deserved wake up call might be pretty harmful in its own right. As a doctor she was simply prescribing him a much needed dosage of reality before it bit him in the rear hard. If he became half the successful business magistrate he was aiming to be he was going to have to deal with some very big fish in the future, people that were nowhere near as restrained as Ryuko had been in unleashing their wrath.

"That will not be necessary. I will pay the full amount but in exchange I wish for you to get him Etiquette lessons. Whether he wishes to become a Nobel or not as a member of my administration Damian will need to interact with the members of high society in the future. It is imperative that as one of my representatives he does not embarrass himself during such events.”

The last thing she needed was to spark an international incident because a member of her retinu couldn’t do something as simple as minding his manners. Of course she also had the option to keep him away from the pubic eye but that was something she’d reserve only as a last resort.

She wanted him to be able to actually enjoy the arrangement between the two of them and benefit from it. If he was happy then he’d be more productive. By allowing him to mindle it would give him the chance to grease the wheels of commerce which would in turn bring more money into the country.

“I shall be holding an awards ceremony to announce the results of the chunin exams soon among other things. I trust you’ll make yourself presentable by then.” She said giving Damian a stern glare and an open invitation to attend at the same time. It would be as good an opportunity as any for her to introduce her new chief medical officer to the rest of her forces.

[14]

Zhu Li would look to Ryuko with understanding eyes, she knew full well the woman's intention but she also knew this wasn't the way. She had served the boy for the past seven years, she understood him in a way that no one else ever could. Still she knew Ryuko was right, whether he wanted it or not he was going to be doing a lot of interaction with high society. Even with his claim of working for himself and his work being like no other, in this instance he was no better than a pompous spoiled prince. "You have my word his attitude will improve and he will be presentable. Thank you for inviting us and thank you for your kindness, Lady Von Rose." Zhu Li stated in her typical always formal and respectful tone. Damien who had been sitting in the chair in disbelief this entire time would finally stand up, mockingly mouthing the words thank you for your kindness silently behind Zhu Li's back. Almost in response to it Zhu Li would whip herself around to face him, the look in her eye was like hell fire causing Damien to stand up straight and flatten the wrinkles in his suit. No words were spoken yet, but if someone else were to walk in the room they might have thought Zhu Li was the boss and Damien her Subordinate with how he was acting. Finally Zhu Li would fold her hands in front of her, "Mister Darhk, your transport to Moonspire is waiting outside. Why don't we go check on the progress of the tower," Zhu Li stated in the same tone she had used when speaking to Ryuko. Damien however still had words to say and he just couldn't keep his mouth shut, "Actually, why don't you... Ouch, ouch, what are you doing, ah that hurts." Damien wouldn't get a chance to finish what he was saying, the moment he opened his mouth Zhu Li would let out a heavy sigh before walking over and grabbing him by his ear and pulling him from the room. "You have embarrassed this company and yourself enough, do you have any idea what she could have done to us? Do you even care?" Zhu Li shouted at him as she let go of his ear at the doorway, "that hurt. And she wasn't gonna do anything, she needs me." Damien retorted as he rubbed his ear, "and what if you're service wasn't enough what if you offended her so much she decided to Kill me, what would you do then. Do you even care that I could have died because of your arrogance, because you couldn't admit just once that you were in the wrong." Damien's eyes would widen at Zhu Li's remark, he would never let anyone hurt her she knew that. However the look in her eyes told a different story, there was fear and hurt and anger all mixed into one. For all that she had done for him, he had let her down. "I am so sorry, I didn't mean to.." "mean to what Damien? Didn't mean to almost get me killed? Because that's what you did, and still I protected you!" Zhu Li's voice would gradually become louder as tears began rolling down her face, she had never used his first name before in the entirety of her employment the past seven years it had always been Mister Darhk despite him telling her to call him Damien. Hearing her say his name and seeing the tears running down her face caused the gravity of it all hit Damien like a ton of bricks. Zhu Li was right, it never would have escalated if it hadn't been for his pride. Damien would hang his head in shame, he was a disgrace. "I am truly sorry to you both," he said just barely above a whisper before turning to leave without lifting his head. The yelling from Zhu Li would have the same effect Ryuko's slap might have held, but with a lot more gravity as it came from Zhu Li. The one person Damien cared more about than he did himself. Once he was gone and Zhu Li regained her composure she would turn back to Ryuko, "I'm sorry you had to see that I was hoping I could have gotten him to go to Moonspire and had the discussion there but he is just so stubborn." She said as she raised her hands to squeeze an invisible neck, "but it was something he needed to hear. Maybe now he will listen." She said with a bow before grabbing Damien's trenchcoat that he had forgotten before taking her leave as well, arriving at the doorway as the message of the gliders arrival would get to Ryuko's office. Smiling she would turn around, "well at least there is one good thing to end on." She stated trying to make light of everything that had transpired, before leaving the room to join Damien on the way to Moonspire.

{Exit ~ Attempt 2}

[15]

Somehow Ryuko could tell that the woman had understood her unspoken words or at least the gist of what she’d been trying to communicate with her glare. Being able to communicate without verbally saying anything could be very useful at times like right now when she was trying to not upset Damian further.

She’d already given him enough of a tongue lashing for one day. Any more would be little more than beating on a dead horse. She didn’t need him to necessarily like her in order for them to both get what they wanted out of this relationship but that didn’t mean she wanted him to resent her either. She wasn’t expecting that they’d become friends but if they could at least get along on a professional level business would go along more smoothly.

She was expecting them to leave but when they got in an argument while still in her doorway it was hard for the priestess not to cringe. Even just being a witness to such a scene was painful and she wondered if the tactful thing would be to simply pretend not to notice as comical as that would seem with how perceptive she was. She heard Damian quietly say he was sorry and her lips curled in a slight smile, it seems he could learn after all. As far as apologies went it was rather mediocre but given how stubborn he was being she’d take what she could get.

“I’ll be sending some gear over to be enchanted. Until next time.” She said letting them leave. She had a lot on her plate left to deal with such as the newly delivered gliders. A (soon to be) Kage’s work was never finished.

[15]

Exit